Saturday’s rain may have dampened the spirits of some who had hoped to spend time out of doors but was really just what our rivers and streams needed - the inch or so of rain that fell raised water levels to above the average flow for the first time in many, many weeks. And it was also a welcome boost to garden beds that were planted early (the bed of lettuce, spinach and arugula planted last week hadn’t shown any signs of life yet, but hopefully this welcome watering will encourage those early seeds to sprout.) 

On our daily walk along the Willowemoc, we stopped longer than usual to watch for rising fish (none to be seen) but all of a sudden, after a good five minutes of standing in one location, there was a huge disruption along the bank of the river - as a hen turkey flew out from among last year’s dead Japanese knotweed stalks/debris! A closer look revealed a nest - she had obviously been there for many days, as there was almost a dozen eggs nestled among the dried vegetation, but was not disturbed by our previous excursions each day. We hastened away, hoping she hadn’t been frightened to the extent that she would abandon the nest. This past week we had come across many feathers and the remains of a hen turkey who had been setting on eggs in the middle of our pasture, probably killed by a coyote, and hope that the one we saw today will return to her nest and have a better outcome. 

On Sunday morning, the Beaverkill at Cooks Falls had crested at about 1200 cubic feet per second, but by about 3:00 pm had receded to 1000 cfs; this was in comparison to the 112-year median average of 722 cfs. The Willowemoc hadn’t risen as dramatically; it crested at about 360 cubic feet per second, and by 2:30 pm had dropped to 281 cfs, as compared to its 40-year median average of 225. Water temperatures in both streams had dropped to about 44 degrees F but by Sunday afternoon, rose again to about 52 degrees. 

The Willowemoc was a bit more easily fishable, due to its water level; on Sunday midday there was a good hatch of the darker Grannom caddis flies, but sadly no fish rising. Sunday evening saw lots of Caddis, some Hendricksons and Quill Gordons, but no rises. Similar conditions had existed on Friday afternoon before the rain, between about 2:45 and 3:15 p.m. - a hatch of what may have been Quill Gordons mixed with a few Hendricksons. The hatch came, then ebbed, then disappeared - not a rising fish to be seen. Water temperatures may have had an influence, and it would have probably been more prudent to fish below the surface rather than with a dry fly. But seeing a hatch of flies was so tempting it was difficult not to try a few casts with a dry fly. 

And on the upper Beaverkill on Sunday afternoon a friend reported a “terrific hatch of caddis and paraleps” on the river, despite higher water and colder water temperatures of about 44 degrees. Paraleps are commonly known as Blue Quills or Mahogany Duns, and are smaller flies, usually in a size #16 -#20. They have dark reddish-brown to grey bodies. They often appear earlier than or just before a Hendrickson hatch. The nymphs of this fly prefer slower water but are very active before they hatch; they swim in a wiggling motion that is often irresistible to the trout. In fact, possibly due to this motion, they can often be the object of the trout’s focus even if a hatch of Blue Quills occurs during a Hendrickson hatch; despite the fact that the Henrickson is a larger fly, especially when both appear around the same time. 

Seth Cavarretta reported good fishing on Sunday evening. He observed mostly tan caddis in size #16 coming off when he arrived around 4 pm with a few Hendricksons as well. He fished his Neversink Lady and took his first two fish on it until he lost the fly; then tied on a classic Hendrickson and caught three more. When the sun went behind the trees he switched to an Adams and caught his last two fish on that fly. 

It’s very heartening to have seen such good hatches over the past week or so; indicative of the fact that despite the harsh winter we experienced, with bitter cold and snowy conditions (a year when you could cross-country ski up the Beaverkill and Willowemoc due to the substantial ice and snow!) there was no significant damage to the stream bottoms when the ice and snow melted. Often during ice-out there is heavy anchor ice, the submerged ice that forms on river beds and attaches to the rocks and streambottom that disrupts the aquatic insects such as mayflies, caddis flies and stoneflies when it occurs. Anchor ice can smother bottom-dwelling organisms and cause them to be dislodged, lifting the nymphs and large away from their normal habitat and causing them to float away and die when the ice breaks free. This disruption can severely impact a river’s ecosystem and cause long-term reduction of the populations - but thankfully, that was not the case this year, as up to this point, fly hatches have been healthy on our local rivers and streams.